How to prepare for extreme cold conditions

If you've at least got an enclosed garage, run the car in fully warmed up and shut the doors quick, that'll help a bit. That's our situation, attached but unheated/uninsulated. I keep thinking about insulating at least, it would be good in the summer too, it can get to be an oven in there. I don't think it's good for the hybrid battery sitting in that.

 

I wouldn't do anything to the car for three days but I would carry supplies in the car for traveling in extreme cold weather.

 

Since the 12V battery presumably is original equipment, hence ~4 years old, I suggest you consider a preventive replacement prior to your trip. Also, as previously suggested, make sure all tires and wiper rubber are in excellent condition and that the tires are correctly inflated. Also check the spare tire pressure and all engine compartment fluids and make sure the windshield washer reservoir has appropriate fluid for the anticipated low temps.

 

Something many don't think of. Those "jump starters" you carry in your car, they also suffer battery output loss when cold. Keep it in the house and take it with you when you leave. If you keep it in the car it will probably be about as good as the cars 12V battery. Are two "dead" batteries better than one?

 

The traction battery (aka hybrid battery) gets the engine going, but if the 12 volt battery is dead, the car won't "boot up".

 

It helps the engine warm up faster, and raise the engine temperature. Even in our mild west coast winters, when I had a ScanGuage hooked up, through winter a lot of drives the engine never got to optimum temps, which would be around 90C. It would hover around 60~70C, this was with grill block. Cabin heat is basically piggy-backing on the engine coolant temp, so the two depend on each other.

 

Speaking of trickle chargers, on another one of my cars I mounted a small trickle charger next to the battery and it stays with the car.
No matter where I travel with the car i have a battery charger and all you need to do is plug it into a 120 V outlet, no clamps, just plug it in.

http://www.amazon.com/Schumacher-SE-1-12S-CA-Automatic-Onboard-Battery/dp/B0000AXTUY/ref=sr_1_10?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1515254596&sr=1-10&refinements=p_n_feature_keywords_browse-bin%3A3599825011

 

not questioning your sanity, but most people had south this time of year.

 

Yes. One caution ... as the hoverboard craze (not to mention the Galaxy Note 7) demonstrated, lithium battery tech can be tricky to do right on the cheap, so this is one kind of product where you might want to take manufacturer reputation into account, if you're going to have one living in your glove box or rear bin.

I got mine from Antigravity Batteries (one of the early players) and have had no trouble. You can find them on Amazon, but you'll also find reviews from at least one customer who was sent an obvious counterfeit by an Amazon seller (the customer already owned a real one and could spot the differences). I bought mine through the manufacturer's own web site, where it turns out they still have some of their original-design, really puny one, which is plenty for starting a Prius, and at an attractive price. (They can also double as USB power sources for your phone, etc.; the original design one has a single USB output, the updated one has two, I think.)

I don't work for Antigravity, and I have no expertise on any competing brands, except that I would be wary of anything really no-name, or counterfeits of name brands.

-Chap